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Melky lands on disabled list

Melky lands on disabled list

8/1/13: Melky Cabrera has to make a second throw into the infield after his first attempt slips out of his hand in the bottom of the third

By Gregor Chisholm
/
MLB.com |

ANAHEIM -- Melky Cabrera is headed back to the disabled list after he was pulled from Thursday night's game in the fourth inning because of irritation in his left knee.

Toronto's left fielder returned from the 15-day DL on July 21 after an absence of nearly a month for a similar injury. The hope was that an extended period of rest would enable him to finish the season, but the plan clearly did not work.

Cabrera sat out a pair of games in Oakland this week because he was unable to cover ground in left, and even after he got back into the starting lineup Thursday it became evident that he's not capable of playing quality defense.

"His knee flared up," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said after the Blue Jays' 8-2 loss to the Angels. "He'll go on the DL and get an MRI tomorrow. It's probably similar to what he had last time."

Cabrera's lack of range proved problematic during the Angels' first at-bat. Kole Calhoun lifted a fly ball to left field that most outfielders would have been able to track down, but Cabrera couldn't come up with it.

The 28-year-old had further difficulties in the third inning when his attempted throw back into the infield slipped out of his hand and allowed Mark Trumbo to score all the way from first base.

A timetable for his return wasn't immediately clear.

Right-hander Neil Wagner was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo to take Cabrera's spot on the 25-man roster. Wagner became a favorite of Gibbons earlier this season when he posted a 3.26 ERA in 19 1/3 innings before Cabrera's previous return from the DL forced his demotion to the Minors.